History of French Tapestries

Tapestries are one of those traditions, which through the centuries, have made rich contributions to the beauty of our heritage from the Middle-Ages to the end of 16th century. Tapestries were originally developed in the workshops of Tournai, Arras, Paris, and the Loire Valley. In 1660 Colbert founded the "Manufacture des Goblines"and the "Manufacture de Beauvaisas" as well as a tapestry worshop in the center of France, at Aubusson.

The most famous painters from 17th century, such as Teniers-Jean-Batiste Huet, Freganard, and Boucher made cartoons for those workshops. In 1757, Jacques de Vaucanson and then Jean-Marie Jacquard (1752-1834) created the finest mechanical looms. We are using those looms today in our French Tapestries workshops to weave the various stitches of Halluin, Loiselle, and Gobelin tapestries. The Jacquard looms and the skills of our weaver's precious works are presented in our collections. The tapestries in our collections are made in a factory that was originally founded in 1878.